SANTA CLARA, Calif. — (BUSINESS WIRE) — September 8, 2016 —
GLOBALFOUNDRIES today unveiled a new 12nm FD-SOI semiconductor
technology, extending its leadership position by offering the industry’s
first multi-node FD-SOI roadmap. Building on the success of its 22FDX™
offering, the company’s next-generation 12FDX™ platform is designed to
enable the intelligent systems of tomorrow across a range of
applications, from mobile computing and 5G connectivity to artificial
intelligence and autonomous vehicles.

As the world becomes more and more integrated through billions of
connected devices, many emerging applications demand a new approach to
semiconductor innovation. The chips that make these applications
possible are evolving into mini-systems, with increased integration of
intelligent components including wireless connectivity, non-volatile
memory, and power management—all while driving ultra-low power
consumption. GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ new 12FDX technology is specifically
architected to deliver these unprecedented levels of system integration,
design flexibility, and power scaling.

12FDX sets a new standard for system integration, providing an optimized
platform for combining radio frequency (RF), analog, embedded memory,
and advanced logic onto a single chip. The technology also provides the
industry’s widest range of dynamic voltage scaling and unmatched design
flexibility via software-controlled transistors—capable of delivering
peak performance when and where it is needed, while balancing static and
dynamic power for the ultimate energy efficiency.

“Some applications require the unsurpassed performance of FinFET
transistors, but the vast majority of connected devices need high levels
of integration and more flexibility for performance and power
consumption, at costs FinFET cannot achieve,” said GLOBALFOUNDRIES CEO
Sanjay Jha. “Our 22FDX and 12FDX technologies fill a gap in the
industry’s roadmap by providing an alternative path for the next
generation of connected intelligent systems. And with our FDX platforms,
the cost of design is significantly lower, reopening the door for
advanced node migration and spurring increased innovation across the
ecosystem.”

GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ new 12FDX technology is built on a 12nm fully-depleted
silicon-on-insulator (FD-SOI) platform, enabling the performance of 10nm
FinFET with better power consumption and lower cost than 16nm FinFET.
The platform offers a full node of scaling benefit, delivering a 15
percent performance boost over today’s FinFET technologies and as much
as 50 percent lower power consumption.

“Chip manufacturing is no longer one-shrink-fits-all. While FinFET is
the technology of choice for the highest-performance products, the
industry roadmap is less clear for many cost-sensitive mobile and IoT
products, which require the lowest possible power while still delivering
adequate clock speeds,” said Linley Gwennap, founder and principal
analyst of the Linley Group. “GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ 22FDX and 12FDX
technologies are well positioned to fill this gap by offering an
alternative migration path for advanced node designs, particularly those
seeking to reduce power without increasing die cost. Today,
GLOBALFOUNDRIES is the only purveyor of FD-SOI at 22nm and below, giving
it a clear differentiation.”

“When 22FDX first came out from GLOBALFOUNDRIES, I saw some
game-changing features. The real-time tradeoffs in power and performance
could not be ignored by those needing to differentiate their designs,”
said G. Dan Hutcheson, chairman and CEO of VLSI Research. “Now with its
new 12FDX offering, GLOBALFOUNDRIES is showing a clear commitment to
delivering a roadmap for this technology -- especially for IoT and
Automotive, which are the most disruptive forces in the market today.
GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ FD-SOI technologies will be a critical enabler of this
disruption.”

GLOBALFOUNDRIES Fab 1 in Dresden, Germany is currently putting the
conditions in place to enable the site's 12FDX development activities
and subsequent manufacturing. Customer product tape-outs are expected to
begin in the first half of 2019.

“We are excited about the GLOBALFOUNDRIES 12FDX offering and the value
it can provide to customers in China,” said Dr. Xi Wang, Director
General, Academician of Chinese Academy of Sciences, Shanghai Institute
of Microsystem and Information Technology. “Extending the FD-SOI roadmap
will enable customers in markets such as mobile, IoT, and automotive to
leverage the power efficiency and performance benefits of the FDX
technologies to create competitive products.”

“NXP's next generation of i.MX multimedia applications processors are
leveraging the benefits of FD-SOI to achieve both leadership in power
efficiency and scaling performance-on-demand for automotive, industrial
and consumer applications,” said Ron Martino, vice president, i.MX
applications processor product line at NXP Semiconductors.
“GLOBALFOUNDRIES’ 12FDX technology is a great addition to the industry
because it provides a next generation node for FD-SOI that will further
extend planar device capability to deliver lower risk, wider dynamic
range, and compelling cost-performance for smart, connected and secure
systems of tomorrow.”

“As one of the first movers of design for FD-SOI, VeriSilicon leverages
its Silicon Platform as a Service (SiPaaS) together with experience in
delivering best-in-class IPs and design services for SoCs,” said Wayne
Dai, president and CEO of VeriSilicon. “The unique benefits of FD-SOI
technologies enable us to differentiate in the automotive, IoT,
mobility, and consumer market segments. We look forward to extending our
collaboration with GLOBALFOUNDRIES on their 12FDX offering and providing
high-quality, low-power and cost-effective solutions to our customers
for the China market.”

“12FDX development will deliver another breakthrough in power,
performance, and intelligent scaling as 12nm is best for double
patterning and delivers best system performance and power at the lowest
process complexity,” said Marie Semeria, CEO of Leti, an institute of
CEA Tech. “We are pleased to see the results of the collaboration
between the Leti teams and GLOBALFOUNDRIES in the U.S. and Germany
extending the roadmap for FD-SOI technology, which will become the best
platform for full system on chip integration of connected devices.”

“We are very pleased to see a strong momentum and a very solid adoption
from fabless customers in 22FDX offering. Now this new 12FDX
offering will further expand FD-SOI market adoption,” said Paul Boudre,
Soitec CEO. “At Soitec, we are fully prepared to support GLOBALFOUNDRIES
with high volumes, high quality FD-SOI substrates from 22nm to 12nm.
This is an amazing opportunity for our industry just in time to support
a big wave of new mobile and connected applications.”

ABOUT GLOBALFOUNDRIES

GLOBALFOUNDRIES is the world’s first full-service semiconductor foundry
with a truly global footprint. Launched in March 2009, the company has
quickly achieved scale as one of the largest foundries in the world,
providing a unique combination of advanced technology and manufacturing
to more than 250 customers. With operations in Singapore, Germany and
the United States, GLOBALFOUNDRIES is a foundry that offers the
flexibility and security of manufacturing centers spanning three
continents. The company’s 300mm fabs and 200mm fabs provide the full
range of process technologies from mainstream to the leading edge. This
global manufacturing footprint is supported by major facilities for
research, development and design enablement located near hubs of
semiconductor activity in the United States, Europe and Asia.
GLOBALFOUNDRIES is owned by Mubadala Development Company. For more
information, visit
http://www.globalfoundries.com.